Duke Basketball: Blue Devils back to No. 1 in latest Associated Press Poll

LOUISVILLE, KENTUCKY - FEBRUARY 12: Mike Krzyewski the head coach of the Duke Blue Devils gives instructions to his team against the Louisville Cardinals at KFC YUM! Center on February 12, 2019 in Louisville, Kentucky. (Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images)
LOUISVILLE, KENTUCKY - FEBRUARY 12: Mike Krzyewski the head coach of the Duke Blue Devils gives instructions to his team against the Louisville Cardinals at KFC YUM! Center on February 12, 2019 in Louisville, Kentucky. (Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images)

The Duke Basketball team is back at No. 1 in the latest edition of the Associated Press Top 25 Poll after wins against Louisville and North Carolina State.

The Duke Blue Devils are back where it belongs.

The Blue Devils are ranked as the No. 1 team in the country in this week’s edition of the Associated Press Top 25 Poll.

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Duke’s historic comeback against Louisville on Tuesday night, followed by the home victory over North Carolina State on Saturday aided the Blue Devils in regaining the top spot, but Kentucky’s throttling of then No. 1 Tennessee secured the No. 1 ranking for Duke.

Tennessee’s loss shook up the entire Top-5 with the Blue Devils taking over at No. 1, Gonzaga, Virginia, Kentucky, and the Volunteers round out the new Top-5.

Nevada rose to No. 6 while Michigan dropped to No. 7, but North Carolina and Houston held steady at No. 8 and No. 9, respectively.

The Michigan State Spartans cracked the Top-10 once again this week, as the Marquette Golden Eagles dropped from No. 10 to No. 11.

Along with Duke, Virginia, and North Carolina, the other ACC teams that are ranked this week are No. 16 Florida State, No. 18 Louisville, and No. 20 Virginia Tech.

The Seminoles rose a spot, while Virginia Tech jumped two rankings, and the Cardinals dropped two spots from last week.

The Blue Devils will start a busy week on Wednesday, as Duke hosts No. 8 North Carolina at 9:00 pm on ESPN and then traveling north to Syracuse, New York to face the Orange in a revenge game.

Syracuse beat Duke in overtime in early January after Tre Jones was hurt six minutes into the game with a shoulder injury and did not return and Cam Reddish did not play in the game due to an illness.

The NCAA Selection Committee already had Duke as the best team in the country, announcing the Blue Devils as the No. 1 overall seed last Saturday in a pre-bracket reveal, but now with Duke was the No. 1 team in the AP Poll, the team controls its destiny for the top seed entering the tournament.

Selection Sunday is just under a month away on March 17.